Lodi Unified trustee area map OK'd

LODI - A San Joaquin County Office of Education committee approved a new Lodi Unified trustee area map on Tuesday, paving the way for the district to end its at-large voting system in favor of by-area voting.

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By The Record

recordnet.com

By The Record

Posted Aug. 23, 2013 at 12:01 AM

By The Record

Posted Aug. 23, 2013 at 12:01 AM

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LODI - A San Joaquin County Office of Education committee approved a new Lodi Unified trustee area map on Tuesday, paving the way for the district to end its at-large voting system in favor of by-area voting.

The San Joaquin County Board of Education must still approve the district's waiver application to make the change outright without putting the by-area voting proposal on the ballot for voters to decide in 2014. However, Lodi Unified is ready to move forward with the process, Superintendent Cathy Nichols-Washer said.

Lodi Unified trustees had already approved a new map, paid for by SJCOE, that redefines trustee areas and ensures two things: that each current board member does not live in the same area, and that each will represent the same number of people.

If the waiver is approved, the 2014 election will allow voters to see and vote only for the trustees who represent their neighborhoods on their ballots, Nichols-Washer confirmed.

Currently, Lodi Unified uses an at-large election system where voters from the entire district can vote on all trustees. At-large elections have been criticized in recent years as unfair for minority neighborhoods. San Joaquin County has tried to be proactive in encouraging districts to abandon at-large systems to avoid being sued.